Sugar & Spike

This revival of DC’s long-running humor comic puts an unusual twist on the property. Originally Sugar and Spike were two unrelated babies who could speak to each other even though the grown-ups couldn’t understand them; here they’re reborn as adult brother-and-sister private detectives who clean up the embarrassing little side messes that superheroes create. The main point is to add a dash of irreverence to the portrayal of superheroes, something Giffen previously did with his Ambush Bug character, though he takes this to less surreal territory. Giffen’s shtick is to bring up some silly aspect of the past DC universe, such as Superman’s island of kryptonite that he shaped to look like himself or Green Lantern’s bizarre little flower sidekick, Itty, and turn it into a problem that Sugar and Spike need to resolve. The superhero kitsch is well-studied, aided by Evely’s fanciful art, though the title characters really seem to have absolutely nothing to do with the originals. (Nov.)